Always remember: Safety first when using power tools.
If you are a first time user of a table saw, read all you can get your hands on about how to use the equipment safely. Your table saw user's guide and the wealth of sources from the internet are a good start. Study them, understand them, and ask questions from friends, trained power tool dealers, or craftsmen to be sure that you are clear on the techniques.
First time table saw users must understand the different types of setups and jigs necessary to reduce the risk associated with the different types of cuts. You MUST understand a rip cut vs. a crosscut and the jigs used for each before you even turn the saw on. The risk of simple injures, loss of fingers, or loss of life is greatly reduced by simply heeding the advice of those that came before you! Much of their advice is presented below.

Always Wear eye protection. Even with a blade guard, there is always the possibility of flying chips. Keep a brand new spare pair of goggles around the shop in case your current ones take a hit so you can keep working. Also, when your old goggles get scratched up or foggy, break out the new pair so you see clearly.

Always wear hearing protection when using your saw. Loud noise not only causes hearing problems over time (which is obviously bad) it also causes fatigue, and there is nothing more dangerous than a fatigued person using a power tool! Get a pair of full coverage hearing earmuffs, and when you are done with the saw, hang them over the blade guard so you remember to always put them on.

Wearing standard hearing protection may cause additional safety problems such as the inability to hear other machinery, warnings at a busy job site, or a partner’s instructions. Consider investing in a pair of high-fidelity earplugs which allow speech to come across un-muffled. They will not muffle sounds in such a way as to change their recognizable characteristics, but only make them quieter such as those available from Etymotic Research — or similar products.

Always make sure that the saw guards are in place and functioning correctly before starting the saw.

Do not stand directly behind a work piece if practical.

Always have a push stick with a 45 degree angle cut within reach for those narrow pieces of wood your cutting if you need to push the stock through the saw. Save your fingers.

To Avoid Kickbacks:

• Always remember - Safety first when using power tools.
  If you are a first time user of a table saw, read all you can get your hands on about how to use the equipment safely. Your table saw user's guide and the wealth of sources from the Internet are a good start. Study them, understand them, and ask questions from friends, trained power tool dealers, or craftsmen to be sure that you are clear on the techniques.
  First time table saw users must understand the different types of setups and jigs necessary to reduce the risk associated with the different types of cuts. You MUST understand a rip cut vs. a crosscut and the jigs used for each before you even turn the saw on. The risk of simple injuries, loss of fingers, or loss of life is greatly reduced by simply heeding the advice of those that came before you! Much of their advice is presented below.
• Always guide work with either the rip fence or miter gauge.
• Keep blades sharp, remove rust and pitch
• Keep the rip fence parallel to the blade. If you cannot be sure that you are precisely parallel, it is best to err on the side of a slightly diverging fence than a converging fence. A converging fence will tend to force the work piece between the fence and the back or trailing side of the blade, pinching the work piece between the two, and causing the piece to be lifted off the table. A diverging fence will not pinch the work piece so there is much less likelihood of kickback.
  Aim to make the far back edge of a fully raised blade to be between .001" and .010" farther from the fence than the front cutting edge using a dial indicator attached to a sled in the miter slot or other method satisfying the accuracy requirements. For a 10" diameter blade this equates to being out of parallel by 0.001 radians or 0.06 degrees worst case.
  No precision equipment - make a shallow cut on a sacrificial piece. Compare the distance from the blade to the fence on the backside of the non-rotating blade with this cut piece. Adjust accordingly.
• Use guards and spreader or splitter whenever possible. Many after market splitters as well as plans for inexpensive shop made splitters (far more convenient than those supplied with your saw) are available on the Internet
• Do not rip a work piece that has no straight edge along the fence, or that is twisted or warped.
• Clear the saw blade before releasing work piece.
• Use a feather board when an anti-kickback device can not be used.
• Do not saw a work piece you can not control or support- the One Man Stand is helpful here.
• When crosscutting, do not use the rip fence as a guide.
• Do not saw a work piece with loose knots or other flaws.

While the saw is running, never remove wood scraps that get caught near the saw blade, your hand can be pulled into the blade.

Never wear gloves while using a table saw. The blade can snag the glove and pull your hand into the blade.

NEVER change saw blades on any power saw until you first completely disconnect it from the power source (whether it's a wall plug or a battery).

Unplug electrical equipment after using to prevent injury to children, and damage to equipment from power surges.

Power your saw through a power strip placed where your foot can reach the rocker switch. That way you can turn off the saw without letting go of unwieldy work pieces. As a bonus the extra protection of the built-in circuit-breaker will keep heat-producing overloads out of your extension cords, outlets, and house wiring.

Make your workshop child proof with padlocks master switches, or by removing starter keys.

Always be sure the blade or saw accessory is rated for the saw RPM.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, setting your saw blade height low (e.g. just greater than the thickness of the work piece) may be more dangerous than having it set too high. A low blade height increases the force of kickback because the teeth in contact with the work piece are pushing straight back instead of down. Low blade height also increases drag and heat buildup because more teeth are in contact with the work piece and each tooth cuts a longer path through the wood. Too high a height isn't good either, increasing the risk of a body part contacting the blade. A reasonable compromise is about 1-1.5" of blade showing above the work piece.
If you are a beginner, or you don't feel comfortable around the saw blade, or you are using heavier clothes (never use loose fitting clothes around any moving equipment), you can adjust the blade height to slightly above the surface of the material being cut unless operations dictate otherwise (corner cuts). You will minimize injuries in the unfortunate event you do have an accident.

Always lower the saw blade or cutter when you have finished. This protects you and the cutter. Many times the saw table is used for other things, like assembly, lay out, or storage. A sheet of cardboard can be placed on the table for protection.

If you are cutting wood that might have nails, remove them. Also use a carbide blade. Carbide teeth are brittle and can shatter if they hit a nail. If there might be hidden nails in a board, make sure to stand out of the way of any shrapnel coming off the blade.

Aluminum plate can be cut on a tablesaw with a "non-ferrous" carbide blade. These blades have the teeth canted backwards a little (i.e., "negative hook" or "negative rake" angled teeth). They are available from many manufacturers. Carbide blades designed for wood cutting have positive hook angles, which may cause aluminum plate to be pulled into the blade uncontrollably.

Aluminum can be cut or ground easier by using a product such as Johnson's Stick wax , a Bee's Wax brick, or simply a bar of soap. Just load the grinding wheel (like you are dressing it) or blade. You will have a lubricant that keeps the aluminum from sticking and loading up on the wheel or blade.This works on surface grinders, pedestal grinders, and all saw blades.

When sawing or using dado blades close to the rip fence, install a sacrificial piece of wood on the fence to protect the blade. This will also give you some extra 'adjustment' space for fine tuning the cut.

Never push a work piece with your miter fence while one end is in contact with your rip fence. If you want to cross cut with the miter fence, first clamp a short piece of wood to the rip fence that is far enough forward of the blade so that by the time the work piece starts into the blade it has cleared the clamped piece of wood. You now have at least the thickness of this wood for clearance between your work piece and the rip fence. Don't forget to allow for the thickness of the clamped wood when you position your fence from the blade. Also be very careful when retrieving the cut piece while the saw is running so that the blade does not catch it and throw it back at you.

If you want to get a straight edge on a work piece that is slightly bowed (when sighting down the edge of the piece), try these methods. Do not use a warped or twisted work piece.

• If you can allow screw holes in your work piece, at each end screw the work piece to a straight guide piece of similar length so the bow extends beyond the guide piece. Rip the bowed piece using the straight piece as a guide against the fence.
• If no holes are allowed, use another piece of similar length and fasten a guide the same size as your miter fence slot to the bottom so that when this guide assembly rides in the miter slot it will be about 2" away from the side of the blade. On the far end of this guide assembly; fasten a small piece along the end, sticking up about 1/2”. Now drive a small nail through it so it acts as a pin to hold the bowed piece on the far end. Hold the near end of the bowed piece to the guide assembly with your hand.
• A bowed board can also be straightened if a long auxiliary fence (a straight board or square metal tubing) is attached to the rip fence. Place the bowed board against the fence so that the two ends contact the fence. The auxiliary fence has to be long enough that both ends of the bowed board will remain in contact with the fence from before the board reaches the blade until it is completely past the blade.

Check the support stand positioning with a test run while the saw is off.

When cross-cutting long boards make sure to use a carriage extension on the sides of your saw table with your One Man Stands at front and back (as needed), and absolutely do not use your rip fence as a guide for cross-cuts. If you do not have a carriage extension, the One Man Stand may be used for side support.

If using a saw like the Shopsmith where the table tilts instead of the arbor, if possible make sure the heavier piece is below the blade.

Maintenance for your Table Saw is just as important as maintenance for your car. It keeps the machinery in good working, safe order and provides PREDICTABLE performance. Do not get surprised (injured) from your saw due to a lack of maintenance. Periodically (more often if you are a heavy or commercial user) do the following:

• Re-check your alignments (fence, miter gage, angle stops). A fence that is out of alignment will cause binding and possible kickback. Heavy and/or rough use can also affect alignments.
• Check for loose fasteners, wire connections, set-screws, etc. Loose fasteners could cause a leg set to shift unexpectedly during sawing operations which could lead to injury.
• Ensure your blades are sharp, un-warped, and all carbides are present. Poor blade performance has caused many injuries due to the user forcing the work during sawing.
• Check belt tensions and alignments.
• Clean out all old sawdust to free up mechanisms (tilt, elevate) to avoid damage.
• Keep your saw clean and ensure the operating surface (table, fence, miter gage track) are free from rust, damage, and defects that could cause snags or poor sliding which would lead to forcing the work during sawing.
• Clean and de-rust cast iron tables using a small amount of Marvel Mystery Oil and a large Arkansas grade whetstone. First, brush off sawdust. Remove resins with mineral spirits or a cloth dampened with the oil. Then pour a small amount of oil on the table, set the stone flat on top, and gently clean with small, circular movements while keeping stone flat. Finally, wipe the entire top with an oil-dampened clean rag and wipe nearly dry with a clean, dry rag. You can also wax the table surface to protect and provide a good slick surface. Whether you use oil or wax; use it sparingly- you do not want to contaminate you work piece.
• For a smoother table surface (less friction when feeding material through your saw), try using a non-wax polish such as Endust. No buildup! The use of a non-wax product also helps to keep your work surfaces clean; it contains isopropanol and isobutane, both of which act as mild degreasers. It will not stain or discolor your work surfaces or work material, and it acts as an anti-static to help reduce the accumulation of dust.
• An easy and inexpensive way to keep cast iron table surfaces rust free is via talcum powder (baby powder) sprinkled on the surface and rubbed in with a dedicated chalk board eraser. Talc also serves as a surface lubricant to minimize sliding friction. Moreover, it won't be absorbed into wood or otherwise cause contamination during finishing operations. It is likely about as non-toxic a treatment as possible. This simple method has fended off rust for over 20 years in a New England basement